Tobacco feed regulating device



July 8, 1941- F. H. B. sTELzER ,rA| 2,248,725

' TOBCCO FEED REGULATING DEVICE Filed Aug. 2o, 195s 2 Sheng-sheet 1 July8, 1941. F. H. B. sTELzER Erm.

` TOVBACCO FEED REGULATING DEVICE Filed Aug. 20, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Patented vJuly 8, 1'941 FFlcE 2.24am 'roaacco FEED aEGUm'rmG DEVICEFrans Heinrich Benno Stelzer and Herbert Rudolf Dresden,

Y. assignors, by mesne A .f umts, to J. C. Muller N. V.,

renaud Application August 20, 1938. Serial No. 225,968 In Germany August26, 1987 Claims. (Cl. 1131-21)v The present invention relates to atobacco feed regulating device more particularly of the type used forforming loose tobacco into cigar bunches.

An object of the present invention is to control the amount of tobaccobeing delivered into the iiller forming press.

A further object is to provide feeding -means with a regulator whichfollows the vibratory feeding motion thereof. l

A further object is to coordinate the feed regulating device withthefiller pressing device.

A still further object is to control the feeding of tobacco into thefiller pressing device by means of the resistance of the tobacco to thepressing member.

In order to turn out bunches for cigars from loose tobacco it isnecessary that these bunches 'be made uniform as to density and weightThis in turn necessitates a regulation of the feed of the tobacco sothat the rate of feed will be carefully adapted to the requirements ofthe iiller forming device. Numerous devices have already had this astheir object. The present device relates to machines in which the fillertobacco is bac'co is accomplished by pivoting a flap plate to astationary part such as the feed hopper and allowing the free end of theplate to rest in the vibratory chute. 'I'he hinged arrangement permitsthe plate to follow the chute through all' of its phases of motion andthe weight of the plate can be adjusted so that it will rest upon thesurface of tobacco with any desired degree of drmness. If desired,-thispressure on the tobacco4 may be increased by the use of springs attachedto the plate.

knife. According to the invention the quantity of tobacco fed into theformer is used to control the rate of feeding from the vibratory chute.'I'he coordination is accomplished by using the amplitude of movement ofthe presser as a measure. The tobacco fed from the vibratory chute fallsthrough the opening inv th`e hollow block and lies before the presser sothat the quantity of tobacco j delivered determines the extent ofmovement possible for the presser. Where a great quantity of tobacco hasbeen delivered it is desirable to limit the subsequent rate of deliveryuntil this quantity has been disposed of.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention will be morefully described hereinafter, and will be more particularly pointed outin the claims appended hereto.

In the drawings, wherein like symbols refer to like or- .correspondingparts throughout' the several views,

Figure l is a longitudinal vertical section of the device with partsbroken away.

Figure 2 is a similar longitudinal vertical section showing theoperating parts in a different position. A

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view of a portion of Figure 1. f

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view of a portion of the devicecorresponding to that shown in Figure 3 when the operating parts are inthe position of Figure 2, and

Figure 5 isa top plan view of the tobacco feeder of Figure 1.

Referring now to Figures l and 2, a tobacco supply hopper I3,ismounted-with its delivery end over a portion of a vibratory ch'ute ortray I. The floor of the chute is provided with teeth or ribs 2 whichextend transversely of the chute Preferably, the hinged plate does notextend' feed lprevents feeding in large intermittent quantitles.

Thel filler forming device with which the invention is intended to beoperated employs a former which consists of a hollow block -with anopening to receive tobacco and a reciprocating plungerwhich performs theactual compression of the tobacco. The compressed tobacco is cut off atsuitable intervals by a reciprocating or other and serve to transmit thevibratory motion of the chute to the tobacco resting thereupon. Thechute is vibrated by mounting it upon a bracket 6 which has a pair ofarms 1 mounted on crank pinsv 8. The crank pins are carried by shafts 9to which spur gears I0 are secured. The spur gears are driven by meansof a third gear Il which is rotated by a belt drive I2 or the like. Itwill be seen that the crank arrangement causes the chute l to movebothvertically .and horizontally. This motion causes tobacco delivered atthe rear of the chute I to advancebetween the side walls 3 and 4 of thechute and to be delivered from the end Il thereof. The rear wall 5 ofthe chute is cut down at its upper portion to limit the amount oftobacco retained at that end of the chute. This arrangement of the backwall permits feeding an excessive quantity of tobacco at all times s o.that sumcient will be delivered for any contingency.

A guide chute I5 is located below the delivery end I4 of the chute. Ashut-oif-ap I6 is mounted upon an axle I1 for movement across thedelivery chute i5 to prevent flow of tobacco. The axle I1 carrying theflap I6 is connected to a lever I8 which in turn is connected through alink I9 with an angle lever 26 pivoted on the machine frame at 2|. 'I'hefree end of the angle lever 20 is provided with a roller 22 which ridesupon the face of cam 23 under the traction of a spring 24. The cam 23 ismounted on a shaft 25 suitably Journalled in the machine frame.

The tobacco delivery chute I5 terminates above an aperture 26 of thepressing device. This device consists of a hollow block for the channel21 therein. Traveling in this channel 21 is a pusher 3|. Tobacco fallingthrough the aperture 26 when the pusher or presser 3| is withdrawnreceives the pressing force of the presser when=it is returned to itsforward position. The aperture26 is provided with a gate or cover 28which is pivoted at 29 and controlled by a connecting rod 30 actuated bya cam or other means (not shown). In the presser at the forward end 32of the compression chamber a knife 33 is mounted for verticalreciprocation. This knife moves intermittently in the direction of thearrow in Figure 1 to cut off suitable portions of pressed tobacco forcigar fillers. The operation of this cutter is well understood and formsno part of the present invention and it is theref' fore not shown herein great detail.

The presser 3| is connected by a pivot 34 with a rod 35 which in turnis'connected to the angle lever 31 through a pivot 36., 'I'he anglelever 31 is pivoted on the machine frame at 38 and carries a roller 46which rides'on the surface nf the cam 4I' under the traction of vaspring 39. The* cam-4I is mounted on the same shaft 25 with the cani 23and it will be appreciated that the cam 4I produces the pressing of thefiller by swinging the lever 31 about the pivot 38 and reciprocating thepresser 3|. 'The motion of the presser 3| is regulated by the followingmeans: a slotted arm 43 is pivoted to the rod 35 and the lever 31 at thepivot 36. Through the slot 42 of the arm 43 a pin 44 mounted on the endof the lever 45 extends. The lever 45 is pivoted to the machine frame at46 and has a braking device which may consist of a spring or otherfrictionally urged pin 41 which rubs against the frame and impedesswinging of the lever 45. The pin 44 has a proiection carrying a. roller48 which extends laterally from the arm and projects into the plane ofmotion of a cam` carried upon the arm 49. The arm 49 is itself fastenedb v means of screws 5I or the like to an angle lever 52 pivoted to themachine frame at 53. The lower arm of the angle lever 52 carries aroller 55 which rides upon the cam 56 under the traction of the spring54. The upper end of the angle lever 52 connects to a rod 58 by means ofthe pivot 51 for the purpose of operating the tobacco regulating plate.

The regulator consists of a plate 64 hingedly mounted at 65 upon thetobacco hopper I3. The

weight of the plate is such that it rests firmly upon the tobacco whenleft free. The outer end of the plate 64 is provided with a hook 63beneath which a finger 621s adapted to lie. The

nnger 62 is mounted upon a shaft 6| which is also securedv to a lever60. The lever 66 is pivoted at 59 to the arm 58 before mentioned. It

'will thus be seen that a high point on the cam 56 will cause the nger62 to raise the hookv 63 of the plate 64 to permit unimpeded feeding oftobacco from the chute. f h

As shown in Figure 5 the plate 64 is narrower than the chute I so thatthe plate lies only upon the bulk of the tobacco being fed and does notentirely stop the flow of tobacco.

It will be seen that the cams 23, 4| and 56 are all mounted upon theshaft 25 and are operated together by any suitable drive means.

The operation of the device is as follows: the vibratory chute is. asdescribed, adapted to supply a greaterl amount of tobacco than can beused in the compression device. In operation, the shaft 25 is rotated inthe counter-clockwise direction as shown in the arrow in Figure 1. Asthis is done the cam 4| rotates and its high portion 66 strikes theroller 40 swinging the lever 31 in a clockwise direction so that thepresser 3| is `withdrawn in the direction of the arrow in Figure 1. Assoon as the front face of the presser has passed the aperture 26 theclosure gate 28 is swung out of the way by approximately 90 in thedirection of the arrow to open the aperture. This gate 28 is swung incoordination with the presser by any suitable means (not shown).

Immediately after the presser 3| is Withdrawn the projecting part of thecam 23 strikes the roller 22 of the lever 20. As aresult of this. theclosure flap I6 is swung downward to open the feed chute I5. Thereuponthe tobacco accumulated upon the flap I6 drops through the aperture 26into the presser channel 21. The cam 23 continues to rotate and theroller 22 drops from the high portion down to the normal face of the camlifting the iiap I 6 to horizontal or closed position. The closure gate28 for the aperture 26 is then closed and the cam 4I now arrives at theposition in which the cut away or low part 61 comes beneath the roller40. 'I'he traction spring 33 then swings the lever 31 in acounter-clockwise direction and returns the presser 3| to its upwardposition thereby pressing tobacco to the form of the channel 21.Accordingly, as the amount of tobacco in front of the presser 3| isgreater or less the presser in its terminal position will lie more orless close to the knife 33. In Figure 1 a small quantity of tobacco liesbefore the presser 3|. In that case, as shown particularly in Figure 3,the pin 44 lies in position to place its roller 48 upon the cam face 56of the arm 49. As in this position of pin 44 the recess of the cam 56lies below the roller 55, as shown in Figure 1, the lever 52 cannotswing to drop the roller onto the cam because the arm 49 connected tothe lever 52 is supported against counter-clockwise swinging by theroller 48 of the pin 44.

When the parts are in the relation shown in Figure 1 feeding of thetobacco takes place uninterruptedly.

However, on the other hand, as shown in Figure 2, the tobacco supply Vin front of the presser 3| becomes too great, then, when the cam disk 56rotates to the position shown in Figure v1, the

roller 55 will be free to fall into the low portion y thereof. Theresult is that the feeding of tobacco from the chute I is substantiallystopped. The presser 3| cannot advance far enough into the channel 21 toclear the end of the cam face 50 on the arm 49 and therefore the roller48 lies in 49. In this phase of operation it will be seen that the arm52 is free to swing in a counter-clockwise direction by an amountsufficient to enable the spring 54 to drop the nger 62 which is the onlything holding the valve iiap 66 from the tobacco vin the chute l. Whenthe finger 62 is depressed the ap 64 drops by its own weight andprevents feeding of the greater portion of.

the tobacco.

After a suitable dwell in the cam 56 a high portion again presentsitself and the arm V52 is swung in a counter-clockwise direction, the ap64 is raised and feeding is re-commenced. In this way feeding of tobaccoto the filler pressing device is kept, constant. If the feeding isnormal as shown in Figure 1 the flap plate 64 is retained However, if onthe other hand, an overopen. abundance of tobacco drops through theaperture 26 when the iap I 6 is opened, then the feeding of tobacco willbe greatly cut down by permitting the plate 64 to close.

From the foregoing description of an embodiment of the invention, itappears that the improvements consist in 'providing Ithe shaking chuteof a cigar machine with a shut off member which is associated with thedelivery end of the shaking chute, and which in its operative positionfollows the movements ci" the shaking chute; the shut off memberextending only over a portion of the width of the channel of the shakingchute. In the embodiment, the shut off member consists of a plate whichis hinged above the shaking chute, and which in the position forimpeding the tobacco feed, places itself sloping obliquely downward inthe direction of the tobacco ow, with its free end upon the delivery endof the shaking chutein consequence of its own weight, and if necessarywith the employment of additional loading by a weight or spring. Also,the tobacco passes through an aperture of the channel wall into acompression channel in which the tobacco, by means of a yieldingforwardly-moved pusher or the like, is conveyed to a cut off contrivanceassociated with the end of the channel and the pusher by means offeelers or the like, and controls the tobacco feed in such a way that incase a certain quantity of tobacco supply in the channel is exceeded,the excess feeding of tobacco is impeded, this being arrived at by a camcontrolled feeler member 50 which coacts with a projection 48 or thelike, attached to the reciprocating pusher 3| or its rod system, 35, 43,t5, and at the same time is connected, by means of a rod system, 558-62,with the shut ot member 64 associated with the shaking chutev I in sucha Way that in case the tobacco supply is exceeded, the fe'eler rodsystem is shifted into a position in which the shut off means 6d canpass into the operating position.

Finally, a structure has been described in which the inflow aperture ofthe compression channel is closed by a. closure piece during thecompression stroke, characterized by the fact that in the tobacco feedshaft i5, terminating in the compression channel aperture 26, a flap I6is built in, said flap i6 opening after the opening of closure 28' andclosing before the closure 28 has been closed.

It is obvious that various changes and modifications may be made in thedetails of construction and design of the above specifically describedembodiment of this invention Without departing from the spirit thereof,such changes,

andmodications being restricted only by the scope of the followingclaims. l

What is claimed is: 1. A device o f the character described comprisingmeans for feeding tobacco, plate means for controlling the delivery oftobacco from said means, cam actuated means for opening and closing saidplate means, a filler forming device comprising a forming channel and areciprocable presser, said forming channel having an opening thereincommunicating with said tobacco feed, and means .coordinating said camactuated means with said presser whereby to permit said plate to closewhen an excessive quantity of tobacco accumulates in said filler channeland to retain said plate open when a smaller quantity of tobacco ispresent in said channel.

2. A device of the character described comprising a. vibratory tobaccofeeding chute, a. flap plate disposed to limit the feeding of tobacco onsaid means for actuating said presser where-- by to limit the movementof said plate operating meansto prevent closing of said plate when anormal quantity of tobacco is present in said filler forming channel andto permit closing of said plate when a greater quantity of tobacco ispresent in said channel.

3. A 'device of the character described comprising a vibratory tobaccofeeding chute, a ap plate pivotally mounted in said chute, cam operatedmeans for controlling the movement of said plate, filler forming meanscommunicating with said tobacco feeding chute and including a presserfor compressing tobacco, means for actuating said presser, an armsecured to said cam operated means for said plate, said arm extendinginto the zone of operation of said means for actuating salid presser,and a stop on said means for actuating said presser whereby to limit themovement of said cam operated means to prevent closing of said platewhen a normal quantity of tobacco is present in said ller forming meansand to permit closing of said plate when a greater quantity of tobaccois present in said container.

4. A device of the character described comprising means for feedingtobacco, pivoted means for controlling the delivery of tobacco from saidof tobacco is present in said channel.

5. Ina machine of the class described including a ller forming channeland a presser adapted to reciprocate in said channel; means for jfeeding tobacco to said channel, comprising a vibratory tobacco feedingchute, pivotedy plate means in said chute for controlling the deliveryVof tobacco therefrom, mechanism for moving said plate means to openedand closed positions to respectively increase and decrease the amount oftobacco delivered from said chute, and means cooerating with saidpresser for selectively actuating said mechanism according to the amountof tobacco present in said llerforming channel, whereby said plate meansis opened when a.'

normal quantity of tobacco is present in said channel, and said platemeans is closed when an excessive quantity of tobacco accumulates insaid channel.

FRANZ HEINRICH BENNO STELZER. HERBERT RUDOLF KASPER.

